A Promise Kept
by Corin Wolfkin
Summary: One should always keep their promises, right? Ronald Weasley certainly believes this is true. * * * A Re-edited version. Easier to read! * * *


Disclaimer: All of the materials borrowed from the world of Harry Potter are the property of JK Rowling and anyone else she's granted rights to. I have borrowed them for creative and entertainment purposes only. No compensation has been or ever shall be received for the writing below. No copyright infringement is intended.

Time Frame: Alternate version of Harry's Seventh Year. Goes AU after the end of _'Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix_'.

Spoilers: None really

Acknowledgments: The first thing here is a massive thank you to danielerin for letting me build on their excellent story. There are a few excerpts from '_It's All Relative_' in this story, but you'll have to read the original to figure how what they are -_^. The second is a thank you to Greywizard for bringing this story line to my attention. And finally, a big thank you Willowfan, my friend and sometimes writing partner. Without you, B, I wouldn't still be writing. I'd also probably be a lot crazier. ^_^ Sadly, she doesn't read PotterFic, but I'm working on her! ^_-

Feedback: Yes, please. Any type you wanna send. Can't fix what I don't know is broken, right? Seriously, if you find a fanfic writer that _doesn't_ want all the reviews they can handle, shoot'em. They weren't human anyway.

Author's Note: This story came about because I was reading through all of Greywizard's work on Twisting The Hellmouth and read his story '_Relative Consequences_'. I rather liked it, so I backtracked and read the story that inspired it, '_It's All Relative_' by danielerin over on . I recommend reading both stories('_It's All Relative_' first).

* * *This version of '_A Promise Kept_' is a re-write. I posted the first version a couple places, but it was ignored or people complained it didn't make sense. I quickly realized that the problem people were having with '_A Promise Kept_' was that it was written with the assumption that the reader had/would read '_It's All Relative_' first. Since most people hadn't done that, it was easy to get confused. Hence this re-write. I still recommend reading '_It's All Relative_' first, but I don't think it's necessary to enjoy this story. At least, not any more! ^_- * * *

Summary: One should always keep their promises, right? Ronald Weasley certainly believes this is true.

{word} = a character's thoughts

_Thursday, March 28, 1997_

It was all about keeping the promises you made, Ronald Weasley decided as he leaned against a wall, idly watching people walk by as he waited. Checking his watch again, he saw that he still had about 45 minutes before the person he needed to see showed up, so he decided to indulge himself a little.

Crossing the street, he entered the little corner muggle market and, after walking around a few minutes, selected a couple cream-filled cakes and a fizzy muggle drink he'd come to like called Dr. Pepper. He smiled to himself as he recalled the previous summer when he and Ginny had dragged Harry and Hermione out and cajoled them into explaining muggle money and trying some muggle foods they'd never eaten before. Amongst those new taste treats had been several kind of "soft drink". Ginny hadn't liked any of them, declaring they were _far_ too sweet for her tastes. She'd said it was like trying to drink liquid candy and decided to stick with butterbeer or fruit juices. Ron, on the other hand, with his bottomless sweet tooth, had loved them, especially the one called Dr. Pepper. He remembered the look on both Harry's and Hermione's faces when he'd asked who the Pepper fellow they'd named the drink for was. No, he wasn't _really_ that dense, but their expressions as they tried to explain were hilarious.

Going to the register, the youngest of the Weasley sons pulled out a small supply of muggle money and paid for his snack, getting the paper money and unfamiliar coins right, thanks to his best friends' coaching. {Hermione would be proud of me,} he thought to himself as the clerk returned his change and handed him a plastic bag.

The thought of his bushy-haired best friend caused a flare up in the carefully banked fire of the rage he felt toward the Ministry of Morons, especially Fudge and Umbitch. What they'd done to Hermione was unforgivable in his opinion, an opinion he knew his family and Harry shared and he was all for tearing the Ministry apart to avenge her. On the other hand, Harry's plan should work just as nicely, so he was willing to let his ideas go.

Leaving the store, he slowly walked toward a small park across the lane he'd noticed earlier. As he walked, he thought over the last few months, especially the last week. He remembered those awful weeks in their sixth year after Hermione's parents were slaughtered by Death Eaters. How she seemed to walk around in a daze, showing no interest in anything. How she'd disappear into her dorm for hours at a time, missing meals, sometimes all three. He and Harry had discussed it and he'd wanted to give her space and time to deal with it. He couldn't actually imagine what she was going through, but if he'd lost his parents, he was sure he'd want to be alone, so it was logical to the red haired boy that Hermione would want the same thing.

Harry, however, knew better. Everyone had tried that when he'd lost Sirius and it only made things worse. Made it so that it took months longer to come to terms with things than it needed to, so he knew their best friend needed them. Or needed him, anyway, since he could identify with her somewhat. Sirius had been a surrogate father, a big brother and best friend all rolled into one and, except for Remus, Ron and Hermione, he'd been Harry's only close family, so he had an idea what she was feeling and _knew_ that she shouldn't be alone, no matter how she felt about.

So he'd simply made sure she wasn't alone. If they were in the same room or class, he was by her side, sometimes talking to her, sometimes just sitting there quietly. If she was in her dorm or in a class they didn't share, he had friends keeping an eye on her and reporting to him afterward. Eventually, she'd confronted him about it and during the ensuing argument, she'd broken down in his arms and truly mourned. Ron had joined them soon after and the two boys had simply held her between them, showing her that her parents might be gone, but she still had family.

After that, she'd started healing, slowly getting better and returning to doing her schoolwork. Soon, that wasn't enough for her. Every time she read about Voldemort's latest atrocity or the latest idiocy to come out of the Ministry, she got just a little more incensed, a little more convinced that things wouldn't change until someone stepped forward and _made_ things change. After a night of contemplation, she decided she would be that person. The time for being afraid or for inaction was over. It was time to fight back.

Ron remembered how Hermione had used the first half of their seventh year to write scathing letters to the editor to the Prophet and to the Quibbler. Letters where she asked questions that embarrassed or enraged the Ministry. Questions like how captured Death Eaters were suddenly freed with no trial, no charges even. She'd suggested that bribes were involved and called for an investigation. She'd accused Fudge and his administration of the deliberate alienation of all the non-human races of the magical world, asked why he was so obviously trying to drive them straight into Voldemort's welcoming arms. She'd granted interviews and had named names, publicly accusing Lucius Malfoy and Belletrix Lestrange of her parents' murders. Hermione had admitted that, no, she hadn't been there, but based on comments by Malfoy's son, Draco, she was positive the elder Malfoy had lead the raid. She'd also asked why the children of known Death Eaters were allowed to remain in school endangering everyone there.

Eventually, she'd gone one step too far and even Albus Dumbledore could no longer protect her. Hermione had hoped that he would be able to shield her until she could graduate, but it was not to be. In the end, she'd been expelled, though she did hold out and negotiated to allow the other muggleborns to finish the term.

In his mind's eye, Ron could clearly picture that terrible day when Hermione had left. Merlin, he and Harry both had been so proud of her that day! Even though they could both see what it was costing her to keep a good face on things, she'd managed it, almost to the very end. She'd calmly turned over her Head Girl's badge and notes she'd made on all the prefects to McGonagall, even managing to insult Malfoy as she did. She'd even joked that she could insult the scum because there was nothing they could do to her for it, she'd already been expelled and told she was no longer welcome in the Wizarding world. Hermione had said goodbye to friends, offered advise on studying for exams, even tried to cheer Ginny up, as his sister was crying her eyes out over her closest female friend being forced to leave.

When she'd turned to say goodbye to him and Harry, he felt his anger turn to anguish. He was losing his best friend, his first crush and his partner at keeping Harry safe and alive. After the decree expelling Hermione was handed down, they'd also had a hard time convincing Harry to not destroy the Ministry or to just leave the Wizarding world all together. In some ways, he now regretted that they had talked him out of the first choice, but maybe it was for the best. On the other hand, every time he thought about what was done to Hermione, he had an ever harder time convincing himself of that, though.

So there they were, Hermione leaving and him and Harry staying. He listened to her words about them following the study schedule she'd left and nearly smiled, despite everything at something so typically Hermione. Even if she wasn't going to be there, she'd made arrangements for them to get their homework done. Still, that little bit of normalcy in all the chaos had helped. A little, anyway. He'd accepted what she was saying and hugged her tightly, fleetingly reminding himself of their disastrous attempt at dating just before her parents were killed. Strangely, they'd become far better friends after that. Ron wasn't sure how Hermione had felt about it, but he'd come to see her as far more than a friend, more that even a sibling. The feelings were stronger than that.

Hermione had broken their hug, reminding him again to keep up his studies and to keep an eye on Harry and help him all he could. It was up to him now to watch Harry's back and she expected him to do so. At her words, he glanced at their best friend and saw what he was sure Hermione had seen already; Harry was within millimetres of turning the Ministry people into a sticky paste. A part of him, the part that raged against this injustice, really hoped one of them, especially Percy would do something stupid.

When Hermione and Harry turned to each other, he'd picked up her things and walked over to stand beside Bill, determined to give them what privacy he could. After a few minutes, he'd heard Harry growl, "Sod it." and turned to see what was happening, then smiled. It was about damned time they'd kissed. Even he could see how much they loved each other, and he considered himself utterly clueless when it came to girls. Now that they were finally admitting things, he was happy for them, even under the circumstances. Still, they say nothing good last forever and, after a few precious moments, Percy had cleared his throat in a pointed reminder and the new couple had broken their kiss. A few more words and another soft kiss, and she was gone.

Percy. Thinking about that berk caused Ron's infamous temper to flare again. It hadn't been enough for the arsehole to deliver Fudge's orders. Ever the brown-nosing toad, Percy had demanded they be followed to the letter, not even allowing him and Harry to walk with Hermione as she left the school. He'd deliberately made everything as hard on Hermione and all her friends as he could and cloaked it in the righteousness of a Ministry decree.

_"I swear to Merlin, Percy, you'd better hope you never run into me in a dark alley!"_

That was the last thing he'd said to Percy. If only Bill hadn't stopped him! He started toward Percy with every intention of tearing the obsequious little toe rag limb from limb, but his oldest brother wouldn't let him. Later, Bill had pointed out that, with two more Ministry people and two school Governors there, he'd have been in Azkaban before dark. Reluctantly, Ron had agreed. Bill had laughingly agreed with him, though, that it would have felt so _good_!

Entering the little park, Ron absently walked over to a nearby bench and sat down to eat his snack and finish waiting for the time to meet his appointment for the day. His mind was still mostly on the past as he bit into a cake, grinning in savage delight as he thought about the Weasley family meeting just 24 hours before. A meeting which had included Harry and Hermione, but most certainly did _not_ include "Perfect Percy". That was alright, though, since the meeting was about him anyway. They'd discussed Percy's recent behavior and the attitudes and opinions he'd espoused over the last few years and, with a heavy sigh, Arthur had said what he never thought he would. He told the family he'd talked it over with Molly and she'd agreed. The next day he would go to the Hall of Records at the Ministry and formally disown Percy. He'd be a Weasley in name only, with no legal relation to their family.

Hermione had objected, had actually begged that they not do this, not because of her. Arthur had smiled at the girl who might as well have been his adopted daughter, but it was Molly that told her it wasn't because of her. Percy's actions in the Ministry's shameful treatment of her was simply the last straw. Hermione had tried to object again, tried to say that Percy was their son and they shouldn't do this. She wasn't worth it.

Molly had smiled kindly at her bushy haired heart-daughter. "No, dear," she'd said. "Percy hasn't been the son I gave birth to and raised for a very long time. As much as part of me doesn't want to do this, I know it's the right thing to do." Molly paused, then added. "Arthur and I also decided that if Percy ever comes to us and can prove that he's honestly and truly sorry for what he's done, then we'll discuss reversing this."

Hermione had opened her mouth to argue once more, but Arthur had cut her off. "The decision has been made, Hermione." He smiled softly to take the sting from his flatly spoken words. Looking over the others in the room, his tone turned formal as he said, "As of tomorrow, Percy is no longer your brother."

That suited Ron perfectly. As far as he was concerned, Percy hadn't been his brother for years, ever since he'd backed Fudge against his own family. Ever since Percy had decided that a ministry career was worth more than his family. The vote the night before had just meant that everyone agreed with him.

The sound of a passing lorry backfiring startled Ron from his remembrances and he checked his watch again, noting with a little surprise it was nearly time for his meeting. After quickly finishing off his snack and draining the soda in one long swallow, Ron stuffed everything bag in the bag the clerk had given him and tossed it in a nearby bin. Moving quickly, but not hurriedly, the large ginger haired man crossed the street again and walked to the place he'd chosen for his upcoming business. Leaning against the wall, he cast a quick "notice me not" spell to keep muggles from wondering why he was loitering in the area and settled back to wait.

* * *

Percy Weasley was having a somewhat strange day. It had started, as most of his days did, with collecting the reports of what had happened overnight. He then consolidated them all into a single report before briefing the Minister on anything that required or deserved his notice. After that, his duties varied and today had been no different, not until a memo crossed his desk just before lunch. It was from the Hall of Records and was a notification of his being formally cast from his family. That made him frown. No matter what had passed between him and his father, no matter the arguments and harsh words of both their parts, he'd never though this would happen. He also he thought it was hurt to see those words.

The timing of his apparent disowning, though, pointed to only one cause. That know-it-all mudb- _muggleborn_ must have somehow convinced his parents to do this. She and that nutter Potter had been nothing but trouble for the Weasley family ever since Ronald had befriended them seven years ago. Since she couldn't do anything to the Minister or the school's governors, she must have decided to strike at him in retaliation for what she perceived as insults from the Wizarding World. Making a quick decision, he stood and headed for his father's tiny office.

As the door was open, Percy knocked on the frame and entered, his eyes automatically locking onto Arthur's face. "Father, I received a strange memo this morning and I wanted to ask you about it. It said..."

Holding up a hand, Arthur interrupted the self-important young man. "Yes, I know what it said. It was from the Hall of Records and was informing you that your mother and I officially disowned you this morning. We had a family meeting last night and that was the decision." Arthur stopped speaking, taking in the shocked appearance of his third born son and felt a momentary flicker of regret. It faded quickly, though, as everything Percy had put the various members of his family through over the last three years, starting the summer Voldemort came back. Percy had stood in this very office and called him a liar and a fool, then proceeded to ignore him for all but the most official reasons.

Even after Fudge, reluctantly, admitted to the Dark Lord's return, Percy continued to avoid him, continued to ignore the mounting evidence that Fudge was just a puppet for Voldemort's supporters, especially Lucius Malfoy. He also continued to denounce all those who "sided" with Dumbledore and to deny that all the evidence pointed to the fact that Dumbledore didn't want to run the Ministry any more than Arthur himself did, but Cornelius Fudge, when pressed too hard, still spouted that tired old lie to explain why he wouldn't enact laws that would actually help the side of Light in the renewed war with the Dark Lord. The rest of the time, when asked questions about why he didn't do anything to curb the Death Eaters, Fudge would simply say that responding to Death Eater raids would only lead to increased violence and open warfare with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Wasn't a relative peace worth more than the Wizarding World going to war for the third time in a century, he asked when challenged.

For all that he considered his wayward son to be intelligent, Arthur had to admit that the boy seemed unable or unwilling to hold his own opinions or to stand up for the convictions that he and Molly thought they'd instilled in all of their children. Instead, Percy merely parroted whatever line of manure Fudge or his cronies were embracing that week. The son he thought he'd raised would have no more gone along with Fudge and the rest of the appeasers than any of the rest of his children, natural or adopted, would have. Yet Percy did just that, to his and Molly's everlasting shame.

Now, here they were, three years later and no closer to a reconciliation, a reconciliation that would now most likely never occur, even discounting the abjuration he'd enacted that morning. The biggest thing Molly had held out for before agreeing to cast her third son from the family was that, if sometime in the future, Percy came to them and was _sincerely_ sorry, they would reverse the decision and welcome him back into the family. Arthur had reluctantly agreed to that, though his reluctance was tempered by Molly's admission that she wasn't sure her fondest wish concerning Percy would come true. Weasleys were _nothing_ if not stubborn.

"Now, Father," Percy's pompous voice jarred Arthur from his contemplations. "Are you sure you want to upset mother with this action? I mean, I can only imagine you're doing this at Potter's and that Granger mudb... girl's demand. You and mother should really..."

Arthur's eyes had hardened at the word his former son had selected to apply to Hermione. He and Molly had tried to raise their children to be tolerant of everyone, pureblood, half blood, muggleborn and muggles equally. If the younger man before him could use that heinous word so casually, unthinkingly, then he was doing the right thing.

"_Harry_," Arthur rather forcefully interrupted Percy, coming to his feet, "did indeed vote to go along with Molly's and my decision, though not as forcefully as Ron did. _He_ wanted to give you to the Death Eaters for target practice." He paused to let that sink in, then continued. "As for the _mudblood_, as you so obviously meant to call the girl your mother thinks of as a second daughter, she and she alone wanted to leave you alone and not do anything. She actually pleaded with us all to just let it go, that she'd agreed to leave so she saw no reason to make more trouble. She left the room when we all voted, so do _not_ blame Hermione for this. You and your actions over the last three years, Percival, are the sole reason for the letter you hold."

The two men stared at each other, neither moving or even blinking for over a minute. When it was obvious that Percy wasn't going to say anything, Arthur deliberately sat back down, pulling a file folder from his inbox. Glancing at Percy, he said, in his most polite, professional voice, "If that's all, Mr. Weasley, I have rather a lot of work to get done today. Good afternoon." That said, Arthur promptly returned his attention to the papers in front of him and ignored the other man completely. Eventually, Percy walked away and Arthur allowed himself a moment to stare at the doorway before flicking his wand, causing the door to close. Taking a deep breath, he felt a single tear well up and start down his cheek. Wiping it away, he whispered, "Goodbye, son."

* * *

After his strange and trying day, Percy could think of nothing he wanted more than to get back to his small flat and relax, perhaps in a hot bath. He frowned as he thought back on a day that started with his family disowning him and the confrontation with his father. From there, it progressed into dealing with a near apoplectic Fudge as Dumbledore out maneuvered him to push an expansion of funding for the Auror department through the Wizengamot. Dumbledore had argued that, like it or not, they were at war and the Aurors were their front-line troops, so it was a simple matter of survival of their way of life to increase both their numbers and available funding. The sole point Dumbledore had compromised on was to make it a gradual expansion, with little to no effect until the next year. Add all that to a need to suppress the news of a small-ish Death Eater raid the night before and it added up to a long, long day.

Walking briskly to the main Apparation point in the Ministry Atrium, Percy started to simply go home, but remembered in time that he needed to stop at the grocer's for enough food for dinner tonight and breakfast tomorrow, at the least. Sighing, he put off thoughts of relaxing the evening away long enough to Apparate to the mouth of an alley he knew near his home. From there, he headed to the small store across the lane and disappeared inside.

Coming out of the grocer's a little while later, the red haired man walked into the alley and started to Apparate home, then decided it was a nice night and he could probably use the exercise, so he might as well walk home. After all, it was only a few blocks and he'd done so many times over the last three years. And besides, walking through this alleyway would cut a block and a half off his walk, so it wasn't really all that far and it wasn't like he'd never used this alley before. Sometimes he simply used it as a convenient place to Apparate from, but often, he'd walk home and the alley saved time.

Decision made, Percy turned to walk into the alley, then paused for a moment. Something seemed off, though he had no idea what. After another moment, he shrugged and stepped off at his usual brisk pace. Three steps later, he again paused, still unsure why. After a moment, though, he sighed and made a little disgusted noise, a bit angry with himself. He was a grown man, not a child to be frightened by shadows! He started walking again, though at a slower pace than he usually used.

Percy didn't really understand it. He'd traveled through this shortcut to his flat more times than he could count, yet today, for some reason, it made him feel uneasy. Jumpy. A slight noise behind him caused him to spin around, clawing for his wand, eyes scanning for Death Eaters, muggle thieves, he didn't know what. A second later, he blushed and released the breath he was holding in a rush as he spotted a rat digging through a nearby trash bin.

"Percy, old son," he said to himself quietly. "You are entirely too jumpy today and for no reason, either."

"Oh, I don't know about that," a voice behind him said softly.

The redheaded man tensed again and, once more, he turned quickly to face this new threat. Before he got even halfway through his turn, though, the side of his face exploded in pain and his vision swam. Unable to stop himself, Percy staggered back several steps before collapsing to the ground, his bag of groceries flying deeper into the alley. Rolling over, he shook his head, trying to dispel the effects of the blow he'd taken. All that did was make his head hurt more, though. A scuff made him turn toward his attacker and he squinted up at the man who'd hit him, a small part of his mind taking note of the fact that the man was blurry not because of the punch he'd taken, but because he'd lost his glasses.

"I tried to warn you, Perce," the man said, leaning down so that light spilled across his face.

Percy's eyes widened as his attacker's face became clear and he recognized his brother Ronald. He felt an atavistic shudder go through his at the rage blazing so clearly in the younger man's eyes. In all the time he known Ronald growing up, he'd never worried about his brother's displays of temper, simply because he was older and larger and their parents had always told the younger kids to obey the older ones. He'd also, to his knowledge, never gone out of his way to anger his youngest brother, not like the twins seem to do on a regular basis, so he'd never had Ron's temper directed toward him. Not really. Now, however, he noticed what he had not when he'd seen him last week at Hogwarts. Ron was no longer a child, but nearly a grown man with Bill's height and Charlie's build and he himself was much shorter, slender built and not very athletic. Adding in the aura on barely contained violence and malevolence and Percy was suddenly, and quite frankly, terrified of the younger man.

Ron smiled down at his now ex-brother, his expression one of unholy glee. "I warned you about going into dark alleys, didn't I?"

Percy's eyes widened even further, then closed tightly as he turned his head and tried to raise an arm as the first blow fell. It was knocked aside with contemptuous ease. For several minutes the meaty thud of fists hitting flesh echoed through the dimly lit alley. When it stopped, a sharp crack, like the sound of a large-ish piece of wood being snapped echoed through the alley, then silence reigned in that small corner of London.

* * *

Author's Note(After word): Yes, I realize that having Percy nearly say the word "mudblood" is out of character for a Weasley, but the impression I got of the Percy in the original story was of a man who had willingly sacrificed _everything_ for his ambition. The people who could help him with those ambitions are Death Eaters and their sympathizers, people who believe all that blood garbage and would casually use that word. I think Percy would pick it up, by osmosis if nothing else, just by hearing so often.


End file.
